NEWS

Morning top 5: Government's education proposals welcomed; former NAMA official due to be sentenced

The new Government's proposals on education are being welcomed by campaign groups.

The Programme for Government published yesterday commits to improving pluralism and diversity in our school system.

It also promises to reform school admissions, based on fairness and transparency.

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One in four pregnancies ends in abortion according to new research by the World Health Organisation and the Guttmacher Institute.

The report suggests that 56 million induced abortions take place worldwide every year.

It comes as Ireland's human rights record has been criticised by the UN Human Rights Council.

They called on Ireland to comply with international standards on abortion by making it available to women in cases of rape, incest and fatal foetal abnormalities.

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A former NAMA official is due to be sentenced this morning for disclosing confidential information to two investment companies in 2012.

Enda Farrell from Dunboyne in Co Meath passed on valuations for various portfolios on the agency’s books.

The valuations related to hundreds of properties in Ireland and Germany.

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The Ombudsman and Information Commissioner is expected to call for an independent complaints body for prisoners today.

Peter Tyndall's expected to urge the Government to bring inmates under his remit at a conference in Dublin today.

Under current rules, those behind bars can only address their complaints to the Irish Prison Service.

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Brazil's politicians are nearing an historic vote on whether to impeach embattled President Dilma Rousseff over allegations she lied to voters about the level of national debt during her re-election campaign.

The Senate will vote on the impeachment later today and a simple majority of the 81 senators will end 13 years of leadership by her left-leaning party.

If politicians vote in favour of impeachment, Ms Rousseff will be suspended from office and Vice President Michel Temer will take over for up to six months.